


Relaxer

by Gaymememachine



Series: Prisoner Adam AU [2]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Adam (Voltron) Has DID - Dissociative Identity Disorder, Adam (Voltron) Lives, Adam-Centric, Alternate Universe, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Arguing, Blindness, Blood, Brazilian Adam (Voltron), Canon Gay Character, Character Death, Depression, Dissociation, Dissociative Identity Disorder, Dreams and Nightmares, Drug Abuse, Drug Addiction, Drug Use, Emotional Numbness, Flashbacks, Gay Adam (Voltron), Gay Shiro (Voltron), Happy Ending, I'll add more tags as i go, M/M, Original Character Death(s), Original Character(s), Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Prisoner Adam (Voltron), Psychological Torture, Psychological Trauma, Scars, Swearing, Tension, Torture, Trauma, Violence, vent-freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-24
Updated: 2019-03-24
Packaged: 2019-11-28 11:06:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,940
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18207584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gaymememachine/pseuds/Gaymememachine
Summary: "My name is Adam Wright. I was captured by a purple furry, and for the past day or so, I’ve been the one and only Prisoner #815.The Galra had invaded Earth, my squad and I were sent to attack, my pod got shot down, I survived with massive injuries, was held captive and healed by my capturer, and now I’m forced to fight to the death in a weird event called “the Trials”. What will happen next? I have no idea."-An AU and prequel to my fic "This Is All Yours" where Adam is alive but gets captured after his pod crash lands.





	Relaxer

**Author's Note:**

> I’m back! I was unsure of how I would return, but I finally figured it out.
> 
> I have decided to make a prequel to This Is All Yours, my other fanfic! I highly recommend checking that out before reading this.
> 
> If you guys like this, I might write a sequel that covers Team Voltron’s quest to defeat Haggar, ending the series.
> 
> If I get something wrong, or even make a simple error I missed while proofreading, PLEASE let me know. I care very much about providing positive and accurate representation, and your feedback will help me improve my writing in this sense for the future. If you want to draw fan art/make memes/cosplay/etc. based on my fic then please tag them using the hashtag #vldtiay. Seeing content from you guys would honestly make my month.
> 
> TRIGGER WARNING: This chapter is rather gore-filled. It also deals with severe injury, blindness, discrimination over disability, mild mentions of bullying, and moderate violence. Please keep this in mind before continuing.

The first thing Adam felt when he regained consciousness was pain. Pain that burned and ate away at his entire left side. Pain that stung his eyes to the point where it left him unable to open them. Pain that throbbed in his head. He didn’t know how long he had been like this, but he felt an urgency to escape this situation. He screamed in agony, beginning to question if he would live through this.

  
Surrounded by an immense heat, the burning pulled him back, devouring him inside. The air contaminated with the smell of burning set fire to his throat, and his lungs were filled with what smelled like smoke. He coughed, only to be met with an immense pain that coursed throughout his entire body. Adam winced, wishing for the pain to go away, but it never did. It made him not want to move a muscle.

  
A thick liquid streamed down his face, with some eventually getting into his mouth. It tasted bitter, like iron, and Adam instantly knew that this was blood. It seemed to be coming from somewhere on his face, yet his forehead didn’t feel wet. He came to the realization that the blood was likely stemming from his eyes, and he cringed at the mere thought. There was no safe method of containing the wound that he could think of, considering the location and his lack of expertise in first aid. His best bet would be to escape the jet somehow and attempt to find help, later seeing medical attention.

  
The burning in his side seemed to spread upwards towards the left side of his face. He could feel it consuming him, and he sensed the jet still in flames. He knew he would burn to death if he stayed in the jet.

  
_I have to get out of here_ , he thought to himself.

  
Adam reached his right arm out, attempting to feel for something to use as a weapon if need be. The assumption that the area would be heavily occupied by the Galra raced in his mind, over and over again, like a broken record. He cautiously felt around for a usable object, yet he remembered something that his mother had taught him when he began to cook for the family restaurant. _When you’re in doubt if something is too hot, always use the back of your hand to feel it._ He decided to follow this advice.

  
As his knuckle grazed upon what felt like a piece of metal, he felt a searing burning sensation in the affected area. He yelled, urgently pulling his hand away. It occurred to him that since metal was a conductor, and how nearly the entire pod was on fire, finding an object safe to grab would be quite difficult.

  
He decided to use his right leg to feel for something. It hurt to move it, but he managed to succeed. After what felt like a few minutes, he came into contact with a loose, metal rod. He experienced no pain from what he could feel through his rigid and broken armor, so he decided to nudge the rod closer towards him and reach out to feel it. The slight warmth of the metal absorbed into his skin, but not in a way too severe. He began to unfasten his restraints, then after he had removed the harness, he grasped the rod.

  
Using all of his strength, Adam pulled himself up, fighting the pain that begged for him to sit still. He stuck the rod in front of him to feel for an opening, and once he detected one, he climbed out of it. He immediately collapsed to the firm ground.

  
Adam desperately gasped for pure air as his hands still curled around the rod. The pain still devoured him whole, eating away at his flesh and taking his vision. He realized that he was still likely on fire, and in panic, he rolled across the packed desert sand away from the jet. Even though doing this made his pain even worse, he continued until he reassured himself that had every trace of fire on him had been extinguished.

  
His next breath, free of smog, was one of the most exhilarating and relieving experiences of his life. As badly injured as he was, he cherished every second of this moment, relieved to be alive.

  
That was, if he managed to survive long enough to find help.

  
Using the remainder of his depleted energy, he began to crawl away from the jet. As he did so, he rolled the metal rod with every move he had made, even though it was a struggle to keep up with. Every time the pain returned, he would mutter a string of obscenities. After crawling for what he assumed was around thirty minutes, he paused, as his limbs were tired and sore. He felt that walking would be more efficient if he could manage to stand.

  
Adam carefully leveled the bottom of his foot to the ground, pushed himself up, and straightened his posture to the best of his ability. He almost toppled over, but managed to regain his stance after holding his arms out. Once he was sure that he had his balance, he continued the excruciating journey, using the rod as a walking stick.

  
He had walked for what felt like anywhere from several minutes to a couple of hours when he heard footsteps in the distance. He quickly grasped the rod in both hands, ready to defend himself. The footsteps were most likely an animal, a friendly human, or (with his luck) a Galra soldier. Hiding was out of the question due to his impaired vision and the flat terrain, so his only remaining tactic was to appear as dominant as possible.

  
“Who are you?” Adam yelled, his voice hoarse and raspy. The words echoed in the distance, bouncing off of cliffs Adam mapped out in his mind. This was the first time he had said a full sentence since the crash.

  
There was no response for a while. Adam’s breath was clearly audible, fighting its way into and out of his tired lungs. Eventually a male with a deep and rugged voice broke the powerful silence. “I am Lieutenant Ranok of the Galra Empire. Come with me, or be faced to fight. You will lose, either way.”

  
This was a member of the Galra Empire, just as Adam had feared. He drew his rod further towards the voice. “That won’t stop me from fighting. I’ll fight until I die.”

  
The voice chuckled before spitting out in a menacing manner, “Then prepare to die.”

  
Rapid footsteps grew louder as they approached for Adam, and he braced for an attack. A heavy force banged against the rod, knocking him back. This hit caused Adam’s pain to resurface, and he screamed, lunging forward to attack.

  
A grunt belonging to a female followed the trend of the rod’s path being halted. For a second, he felt guilty for attacking a female, but he knew that this was necessary for his survival. Gender likely meant nothing to the Galra, anyways. Male or female, they would send out soldiers ready to fight and slaughter anyone that stood in their way.

  
Using his senses of touch and sound, he dodged when the swishing of the attacker’s weapon came close to him, and struck immediately after. It seemed to be an effective strategy, as there were several grunts heard with each attack, so he continued.

  
After five repeated instances of dodging and attacking from below, a different idea came to Adam’s mind. After a sixth dodge, he attacked from above, knocking the person down. There was a slight grunt belonging to the female, then a thud against the packed sand.

  
It was now down to him and the Galra Lieutenant, yet Adam had no idea where he was. He swung the rod in a quick circle until it stopped on something. He found him.

  
The man grunted as if powering himself for an attack, and Adam braced himself, dodging the blow. Adam grunted in return, fighting off the pain that coursed throughout his entire body. He was growing weak, and he knew that he couldn’t keep this up for longer. Adam heard the swoosh of a sword and braced himself to block the attack.

  
“You just don’t know when to quit,” said the enemy. From the tone of the voice, it sounded like he was grinning.

  
You just don’t know when to quit, do you? Adam thought back to his ex fiancé’s words when they were racing each other on hover vehicles back at the Garrison. Adam was struggling to keep up with his boyfriend, but he never gave up until he came second place to the finish line.

  
“You’re right…” Adam exerted more force to fight off the attack. “I don’t know when to quit.”

  
Adam managed to knock the sword out of the attacker’s hands, giving Adam dominance in the fight. This was his opportunity to strike.

  
He drew his rod above his head, about to strike, but was knocked out before he could carry out the job.

  
\-----

  
“I don’t care how successful he was in combat. This human is injured and blind, and he will serve minimal use to us compared to an able-bodied fleshling of his species,” said a demanding female. She sounded absolutely terrifying to Adam, and he winced a bit. Adam tried to escape, but was held down by restraints. He hoped that he would get out of this situation somehow. The room was already starting to feel cold.

  
“All of that can be fixed with our resources. He knocked out the soldier by my side and put up a decent fight for several minutes. He also appeared to express high intelligence, utilizing tactics as he fought without being able to see. There’s something special about him. If you would just-”

  
“No.” This was a different voice, and it sounded like a narrator for a movie trailer, yet with a menacing overlay. There was a wispy tone to it, and it sounded like how a snake would speak if it could talk. “We can’t afford to waste our resources on this… this defect. You are to bring him to be siphoned for his energy. He will serve more use to us in quintessential form. That’s an order.”

  
The air, filled with unspoken words, suffocated Adam before the lieutenant muttered, “Vrepit sa.” Adam had no idea what that meant.

  
“Hmm,” the man with the serpent-like voice uttered. There were two single footsteps. “Branov, come with me.”

  
There was a silence following that, and Adam assumed that the person being ordered was either uncomfortable by the situation or wasn’t much of a talker.

  
Adam heard several footsteps growing quieter by the second until they faded away. He was now aware of how cold he really was, and he could feel that he had been stripped down to a jumpsuit, which he assumed was the one he wore underneath his pilot suit. He could feel goosebumps from under the synthetic fabric. _So, so cold._

  
The table he was strapped to began to move, and Adam realized that he was likely going to die, being sacrificed for the Galra’s own personal gain. He wanted to set the entire building he was in on fire, killing the people in it, yet at the same time he wanted to do nothing. All he could do was let his hair blow back with each draft of air as the table turned multiple corners. He didn’t know where he was going, nor did he want to know.

  
The table’s movement came to a stop, and Adam’s heart raced. He expected to be unfastened from the table and be executed somehow, and he was genuinely terrified of the outcome of the situation. This would be the end, and he would leave this world without ever saying goodbye to his family or friends or ex-fiance, Takashi.

  
He heard the wiring of what he assumed was a gun, and he braced for what would likely happen next.

  
“You are going to operate on this man and restore his vision. I shall stand here until the job is done.” It was the man who was escorting him. Adam exhaled, relieved that he wasn’t going to die.

  
If the situation didn’t end in disaster, that is.

  
“Vrepit sa,” said a different male.

  
Within seconds, a needle was shot into Adam’s arm, and he was out cold.

  
\-----

  
“He’s awake.”

  
“Can you see me?”

  
Adam opened his eyes, and even though his vision was slightly blurred, he could make out the person in front of him: a young, muscular Galra male. His gaze was extremely focused on Adam’s eyes, and it seemed somewhat creepy up close. He then remembered that he had been asked a question, and he firmly stated, “Yes.”

  
A doctor in the room pulled out a small flashlight and shined it in Adam’s eyes, pulling down on his bottom eyelids. When he moved the flashlight away, spots covered Adam’s vision, and he could barely see. Once the spots faded away, he looked around at his surroundings. He seemed to be in an operating room, but he had no idea where he truly was.

  
Another doctor pulled down a chart in front of him, yet the symbols on it were foreign to Adam. The doctor pointed to a symbol with a rod of some sort. “Read off the symbols on this row.”

  
Adam slightly contorted his face in response. “The symbols are clear, but i don’t understand them. Do you have one of these with the English alphabet?”

  
The doctor quickly pulled the chart back up. “Right, I forgot that humans don’t understand the Galran alphabet.” He turned to the armored Galra in the room. “Lieutenant, it may take us a while to find a chart. Should we proceed?”

  
The lieutenant waited a bit before saying, “No. If we do that, someone will be more likely to come. I suggest leaving now, as you will be at less risk of getting caught.”

  
He gave each doctor a handful of coins before leaving the premises. Now there was only Adam and the lieutenant in the room, yet Adam still had questions.”

  
“Where am I? Who are you? What am I doing here?”

  
“I am Lieutenant Ranok. I introduced myself earlier, but you were unable to see me at the time.” He ran a clawed hand through his scruffy hair, then continued. “You are currently inside a Galra ship. I saw you as worthy, so I gave you a second chance.”

  
All of this sounded like bullshit to Adam. This man could have left him alone, yet he chose to attack him. He decided to argue with him. “Second chance? You chose to attack me and sold me out to slavery. I-”

  
“I think you should be thanking me.”

  
This only made Adam feel incredibly dumbfounded. “Why should I be thanking you?”

  
“If I left you alone, then you would have been left to fend for yourself. Even if you survived, you would have been left unable to see for the rest of your life. I have given you an opportunity to be a warrior, and if I may pay the price for it, then so be it. I didn’t have to do this, but I chose to anyway.” He looked around the room in a paranoid manner, swiftly turning his head around, then turned back to Adam. “Besides, you’re not a slave. You’re going to be a warrior to the Galra.”

  
“Slave, warrior: same thing.”

  
“You can hate me all you want, but that will do you no good here.”

  
Adam was now being honest with himself. Ranok made a good point. Due to the Galra’s advanced technology and medicine, he was able to see again, and without pain. Deep down he knew he owed his life to this man, but he didn’t want to admit it. He still resented the Galra. He looked away, cringing for what he was about to say next. “Thank-”

  
The door opened, and a female Galra appearing of high ranking stormed into the room with four purple heavily armed humanoid robots behind her. Her bushy eyebrows were furrowed together, and her shoulders were taut. She looked at Adam, then at Ranok. Adam already knew that trouble was going to stir.

  
“Lieutenant! You were given an order. You were to bring this prisoner to be harvested.” She grabbed Ranok by the collar, nearly lifting him entirely off the ground. “If you belonged to my ship, I would execute you, but that’s up for your commander to decide.” She turned her body, preparing to exit, then looked at the sentries. “Keep close guard over them.”

  
The woman left, leaving behind a tense energy.

  
Ranok turned back to Adam, with visible sweat trickling down his face. “I may not live to see another day, but I will beg they will spare your life. You have the potential to be something great.”

  
Adam wanted to reply, but the door opened before he could even think of what he would say. The woman from before entered, along with a Galra male he had never seen before. He was tall, slender, and snake-like. Topping off his meaning appearance, his sly grin was enough to cause nightmares. It made Adam stiffen in his restraints.

  
The man laid eyes on Adam, and he showcased his teeth in a sickening smile. “Hello, human…” he said in a familiar, whispy voice that sent shivers down Adam’s spine. It was the same one he heard earlier. God, this guy was intimidating.

  
Adam said nothing. He was frozen.

  
The tall Galra kneeled down in front of Adam, staring into his soul with glowing yellow eyes. “What is your name?”

  
He couldn’t respond. He was still stiff in place.

  
“WHAT IS YOUR NAME?”

  
Adam was startled out of his halted state. “Adam! Adam. My name is Adam.” Despite being panicked out of his mind, he tried his best to appear strong. He wasn’t sure if it was working.

  
“Hmm,” the man muttered before standing back up again. He turned to Ranok. “You say this man is worthy? Worthy enough for you to go against orders, use our resources, and put your life at risk?”

  
He straightened his posture. “Yes, commander.”

  
The commander’s eyes narrowed. “As of right now, he is of my ownership. He shall be healed, then evaluated.” He was about to leave, but turned back around to face Ranok. “If he is worthy of our time, then he is to be brought to my ship. However, if he fails to meet up to my expectations, then you shall be executed.”

  
Ranok’s right arm met his left breast as a salute, and the commander (along with the woman) proceeded to leave. Just as they were about to step through the doorway, the commander turned to shoot another skeptical glance at Adam.

  
The door shut behind them, and Ranok immediately began to carefully unfasten the restraints. After both of Adam’s hands were free, Ranok handcuffed them together. So much for those seconds of that implied and restricted feeling of freedom.

  
Ranok helped Adam get on his feet, and he nearly toppled over from the numbness in his legs. He assumed that he was on some sort of painkillers, as the burn on his side was no longer bothering him. The downside to this was that he could barely physically feel anything, and he needed support in order to even stand, much less walk.

  
“I’m going to take you to a cryo-pod to heal from your injuries. After that, you will be evaluated. Please answer carefully, for the sake of both your life and mine.”

  
Adam nodded in response. “Yes.”

  
Ranok placed Adam’s right arm across his shoulders, then wrapped his hand around Adam’s waist. Carefully, the two left the room as Ranok escorted Adam down the empty, lifeless, and illuminated hallway. Each light Adam saw was purple, and he was already growing sick of the color. It was literally everywhere, following him wherever he went.

  
They entered a gigantic room filled with around a hundred large, purple, tube-like containers. _These must be cryo-pods_ , he thought to himself. He noticed that many of the pods were currently occupied, and he looked more thoroughly once they got closer. Some were Galra, some were aliens that appeared to have human-like featured, some were aliens that nowhere near resembled the build of humans. Just as he thought he’d seen it all, he witnessed a girl in one of the pods.

  
It was a human.

  
The sight made Adam’s stomach churn. She appeared to be not much older than his fourteen-year-old sister, Lita, and she looked very weak. Not only was her skin gray, but her muscles and bones portrayed a delicate and frail appearance. He felt a twinge of hatred that the Galra were capturing innocent children and turning them into slaves. Adam wanted to resist, but he knew that he was too weak to do that, and he didn’t want to put another life on the line for his own actions. The best he could do was give in.

  
Ranok guided him to an open cryo-pod a few pods away from the girl. Hesitantly, Adam stepped inside, and the door shut. Within seconds, he naturally fell asleep.

  
\-----

  
The door opened, and Adam would have fallen out if he hadn’t regained his balance in time. This task proved to be extremely challenging with cuffed hands and disorientation, but he still managed not to fall flat on his ass. He stumbled out of the pod, then heard a beeping to his right. Cautiously, he turned to look.

  
“Prisoner detected. Initiating scan now.”

  
One of the robots Adam saw earlier was pointing a gun at him, and he froze in place.

  
“Identification successful. Contacting Lieutenant Ranok.”

  
For several seconds, Adam stood there, hands in the air, taken aback by the robot. The only sound present was Adam’s breathing.

  
Heavy footsteps were heard from down the hall, growing closer and closer, until they echoed off the walls of the large room Adam was in. Within a short moment later, Ranok appeared from behind a row of cryo-pods while carrying a small stack of clothing.

  
Adam stepped back a little, dropping his hands. “How long have I been out?”

  
“A couple days,” he answered entirely on cue. “I commanded the sentries to notify me when you awoke.”

  
_Sentries. The robots are called sentries._

  
Adam remembered that his pain had completely disappeared without any pain medicine, and he still needed answers. “What have you done to me?”

  
“I’ve healed that burn of yours. Now, you should be free of pain without medicine.” He looked at the stack of clothes he was carrying, holding them out to Adam, now staring into his soul with glowing yellow eyes. “This is your uniform. You are to shower and change into this, then be evaluated. I will escort you there once you have changed.”

  
He grabbed the clothes from Ranok’s clawed hands, taking them into his own. “Uh… Okay?” Adam was still slightly disoriented and confused. He had no idea what the outcome of this situation would be; he just wanted to get out of it.

  
“Come,” said Ranok. One of the sentries nudged Adam hard on the back, and he exclaimed in response. Exhaling, he put one foot in front of the other and began to walk as two sentries followed.

  
As they were walking past the rows of cryo-pods, Adam couldn’t help but take a peek at the tube where he saw that young girl. The pod was now empty.

  
_Where could she have gone?_

  
\-----

  
Adam was un-handcuffed and shoved inside a private bathroom. Once Adam stumbled inside, the door slammed shut, and he had never dreaded a bathroom more. He wanted to leave, but he was aware that the two sentries that followed Ranok were heavily armed, and he knew he wouldn’t be able to escape in this scenario.

  
The stack of clothes were still in his hands, and out of curiosity, he unfolded the garments. The item on the top of the stack appeared to be a tattered lavender tunic. He assumed that there were pants that went along with this, so he continued examining the items in the stack.

  
The item below the tunic was a black spandex leotard, and he was surprised that it seemed to be his size. The thought of the Galra measuring him while unconscious made him very uncomfortable and only added on to his hatred towards them.

  
The last item was a fresh pair of underwear, and that alone made him respect the Galra a lot more. They had a sense for hygiene. It almost made up for the fact that they shot down his pod, gave him severe injuries, and kidnapped him.

  
He set the clothes down on a counter and walked over to the shower in an inexplicable haze. His eyes fixed on the floor in case he happened to lose his balance. Without paying much mind to anything, he turned the shower on and began to undress.

  
As he was unzipping his jumpsuit, a thought occurred to him. He likely gained a scar from the burn that he received, and he came to terms with himself that he wasn’t ready to see it yet. His best bet was to shower with his eyes closed.

  
Once he had finished undressing, he nudged his clothes to the side and stepped in the shower, shutting the sliding door behind him. As he turned around, he caught sight of something in a mirror that caught him off guard.

  
The first major change he noticed about himself was a burn scar running up his left side, extremely large in size, rough and unnaturally healed. There were so many qualities about it that made it hard for Adam to turn his head away, and he cursed himself for it. With a shaky hand, he traced his fingers over the area, feeling the odd surface. This burn was very foreign to him, as he wasn’t used to having it, and it was very noticeable unless he wore long sleeves and some article of clothing or accessory that covered his neck. He knew that he would have his for the rest of his life, but he was still in denial. He didn’t want to believe it.

  
He followed the scar upwards until it stopped at his cheek, then further inspected his face. Not only were his glasses gone, and he could now see perfectly fine without them, but he also had a noticeable scar vertically across his right eye. He also had several other scars on his face that were much smaller and less noticeable that he guessed were from shrapnel, but the one across his eye was the one that caught his attention most. He couldn’t tell if it was directly from the shrapnel or from the surgery, nor did he want to know.

  
This all felt like a nightmare that he couldn’t wake up from. One day, he was a hopeless fighter pilot who put his life on the line in hopes of a better future for the survivors of the war and a possible reunion with his grandfather and eventually his ex-fiancé; the next, he woke as a prisoner forced to fight for his life. He wasn’t even sure if all of this fighting would be worth it, and he debated between giving up or becoming the man he never wanted to be. Either way, he would be dishonoring himself.

  
This was all so much to handle at once, and he couldn’t take it. His fist pounded into the wall, and suppressed sobs wrestled their way out of his body and mind. He stifled them the best he could, but that did nothing to stop the tears that streamed out of his eyes. His throat burned, his shoulders shook, and he never felt so lost in his life.

  
He then noticed the shower water running down his back, and the realization kicked in.

  
He lathered his hair in the soap from the pump.

  
After he finished his shower and changed into his clothes, he would be forced to be evaluated.

  
He rinsed off the bubbles that the soap had formed.

  
If he performed well on this examination, then he would likely become forced to fight. If he performed poorly, he would either be given a different order or executed along with the man who saved him.

  
He repeated the process on his face and body, carefully going over the burn.

  
There was still a major choice that he had to make: to die a coward, or to live a champion.

  
\-----

  
Adam was immediately brought to a lobby of some sort after he had changed. There were two long benches lining the side walls. Along the center of the other wall was a door, which he assumed was the examination room. As of that moment, the waiting room was empty, with the exception of Adam, Ranok, and the two sentries.

  
“Be seated. You will be seen shortly,” said Ranok.

  
Adam sat near the middle of the bench as Ranok and his sentries stood close by. It was quiet… too quiet. Reality felt extremely altered.

  
The door in which they came through opened again, and a young human male no older than Adam entered the room along with another sentry. He had dark greasy hair that fell at his shoulders, blue eyes, and a jawline that was so square that it could have easily been mistaken for a cube. The man sat down in the seat across from Adam. “Hey, man.”

  
Adam looked up in response, unsure of what to say. “Oh… hello.”

  
The man was now staring at him with a concerned expression, eyeing Adam from head to toe. “What the hell happened to you?” There was a clear tone of disgust in his voice.

  
Adam snarled, then looked away. He didn’t come there to socialize, regardless of what species me may be interacting with.

  
The door to the examination room opened, and out walked the girl Adam had seen before getting into his pod. She appeared to be more lively and healthy, but she radiated a sense of dread. Adam couldn’t blame her.

  
“Next,” said a rough witchy voice from the other room.

  
Adam stood, making his way over to the door. As soon as he stepped inside, the door shut, and he faced the nurse who was sitting at her desk.

  
“First name?”

  
“Adam.”

  
“Last initial?”

  
“W.”

  
She typed something up on her computer. “Alright, stand on the platform.”

  
After noticing a large platform in the corner of the room, Adam did as he was told, stepping onto the elevated surface.

  
“Hold your arms out.”

  
Adam raised his arms out in the shape of a T, trying to resist the urge to make a T-posing joke. _This is serious, Adam._

  
“I’m going to conduct a scan. Stay on the platform and don’t move.”

  
She pushed a button, and a hologram projection acted as walls around the exposed sides of the platform. There was a horizontal laser of some sort moving up and down his body. As this was taking place, statistics appeared on the screens. He tried to read them, but they were in foreign symbols. All he was able to understand was that there were several green bars on the screen, indicating that he was likely fit and healthy. So far, performing poorly on this exam wasn’t a very realistic option.

  
The nurse pushed another button, and the two artificial walls disappeared. Adam dropped his sore arms back to his side, awaiting further instructions.

  
“Sit in that chair,” she said while pointing to another corner, where a peculiar chair was. He sat down, tapping his foot repeatedly until the nurse came. She locked the wrist and ankle restraints, then handed him a helmet with wires hooked up to it.

  
“What is this for?” he asked.

  
“I will scan your mind to see if it is healthy.”

  
Adam reluctantly agreed, leaning his head forward. The nurse secured the helmet on his head, tightening the straps around his jaw. Once she finished tightening the strap, she proceeded over to her desk and pushed another button.

  
His vision seemed to glitch, and he was at a loss for words. He expected pain, but he felt nothing except a warped transition from reality to a mysterious realm.

  
\-----

  
Adam snapped into what felt like a dream. He was inside a moving train, struggling to keep his balance as the car wobbled forward and side to side. The scenery outside was pure black, and nothing inside the car was entirely clear. The train’s squeals filled any silence there once was. Now, he was surrounded by moving shapes in color, flashing past him as the train sped towards its inevitable destination.

  
Only this was in his mind, and the train could run for as long as it wanted to.

  
The train halted to an unexpected stop, and Adam lost his balance. He fell to the floor with a thud, then pain followed, coursing through his body. Adam was about to stand, but he could feel something stopping him.

  
“Don’t expect me to be here when you get back.”

  
It was his own voice, coming from nowhere. A deep heaviness weighed him down upon being reminded of those words. He really wasn’t going to be there when Takashi got back.

  
He got back up on his feet and clung to a pole that he had found. Just as he had done that, music began to play. The train continued to move, only backwards this time. The music shifted between several songs he recognized that had been stuck in his head recently. The songs kept of changing, and changing, and changing.

  
“I can’t wait for you to be home for the holidays.”

  
This was the voice of his mother: the person who helped him adjust to a new life in a new country, the person who would supervise his cooking, the person who supported him unconditionally regardless of his sexuality. He most likely wouldn’t ever be able to see her or the rest of his family again.

  
The voices seemed to multiply and overlap, growing louder and louder along with the music in the background. The voices belonged to people he found significant to his life and seemed to go chronologically from most recent to the oldest thing he could remember, with some variations. Takashi, his mother, his father, his sister, his extended family, his friends of both new and old, his commanding officer, bullies… it was a lot to take in all at once.

  
“Takashi… How important am I to you?”

 

“You’re choosing _him_ over me?”

  
“You still have much to learn about the fine craft of cooking, young man.”

  
“Hey, wait up!”

  
“Why are you here if you barely speak our language? Go back to your own country.”

  
He turned his head as each voice bounced around the room, confused out of his mind. They swarmed the air until only one voice remained.

  
“Don’t ever say that about yourself. I love you, Adam, and I always will.”

  
It was Takashi’s voice.

  
The floor collapsed from below him, and he screamed as he free fell from the sky. He was falling, falling, falling, until he landed on the ground on his feet. Surprisingly, it barely hurt, and he felt completely fine.

  
For miles upon miles, there was nothing but the vast desert and immense blanket of grainy soil. There was not a thing in sight.

  
“Choose wisely,” said a creepy voice from behind him.

  
Adam jerked his head around to see a cloaked figure with long silvery hair carrying two stone bowls. The first bowl contained a bow covered in white feathers, while the second bowl held an obsidian handle with a carving that looked like a hybrid between a lion and a cobra on the end.

  
“What is this-”

  
“Choose carefully.”

  
Without hesitation, Adam wrapped his fingers around the obsidian sculpture. He was drawn to it, yet he couldn’t tell why. Perhaps it was the material, the lack of knowledge of the object’s purpose, or it’s carving. Maybe it was a combination of two of those factors, or all three. He just wanted answers.

  
The woman along with the bowls vanished, but just as she was gone, there was a thundering roar with a hissing overlay. He turned his head to see a horrifying and gigantic beast. It had the face of a lion and the body of a combra, yet unimaginably larger. Its head was adorned in fur and the rest of the creature was covered in purple scales. It looked absolutely terrifying, and based on the looks of it, the beast didn’t like Adam at all.

  
He could feel the object in his hand shift a little, and he watched as the handle extended in length and grew a spear at the end opposite to the carving. He was amazed by how the sculpture worked, and he still had questions, but he had an even more significant thing to worry about.

  
The beast attempted to strike, and Adam dodged the attack. Its head collided into the ground, and while it was dazed, Adam took this opportunity to attack its neck with his spear. He drove the weapon deep into thick flesh, then pulled it out. Now blood gushed from the wound, and the beast roared in agony.

  
A grand Greek-ish building with a Galra twist to it appeared out of nowhere, not too far away. The roof was supported by several extremely thick columns that surrounded the building with there being more in front. This gave Adam an idea, and he wasn’t sure if it would work or not, but he went for it anyway.

  
While the monster was chasing him, he ran around one of the columns. The beast followed him, and he ran around another one. He continued to do this, sometimes jumping over and sliding under this creature, until it was tied up in a knot.

  
To finish it off, Adam triumphantly yelled while stabbing the beast in the neck again and slicing in, nearly decapitating it. He knew that snakes in real life could control their bodies even with their heads detached, but since this was a combination of a cobra and a lion, he hoped that it wouldn’t be possible for this creature to do that.

  
The earth below him shooked, and he was nearly knocked down before the ground gave way below. Once again, he was free falling, this time through space. His descent was slowed as well as his mind. For a moment, his thoughts hid away in their burrows, and he took in the stars and planets and moons in sight as the cosmos surrounded him. This made him understand the reason Shiro left him. He wanted to chase his dream, and it was a quite beautiful one.

  
“Adam, I’m here.”

  
Adam’s body transitioned from floating in space to treading in water. The starry abyss transformed into a beach, and he was in the ocean. A metal hand reached out to him, and he looked up to see who it belonged to.

  
It was Takashi. He looked so different. His hair now resembled Oreos, there was a scar across his nose, and his arm had been replaced with a prosthetic.

  
_No, it’s not him. It’s not._

  
But he knew damn well that it was. He found out when he watched the recording his ex sent from space. He had completely changed, and Adam didn’t want to believe it.

  
He grabbed onto his hand, pulling himself up out of the water and stepping onto wet sand. Adam was still holding Takashi’s hand, and his breaths were shaky, but he didn’t know why. He was just happy to see him again.

  
Takashi spun Adam around and caught him as he fell back. Adam wrapped his arms around his neck and stared into his deep gray eyes.

  
“Takashi…”

  
“Breathe, Adam. Breathe.”

  
He did as he was instructed, inflating his lungs, then letting out all of the carbon dioxide. He repeated this process until he was calm.

  
“Adam, listen to me.”

  
He gently nodded in response, making eye contact with him again. “Yeah?”

  
He paused before saying, “I am so, so sorry. I shouldn’t have left you like that. I should have spent my final days with you. You were willing to take care of me, but-” He looked away. “I guess I wanted something more.”

  
Adam looked down at both of their feet, which were almost touching. “Right.”

  
“Well, that was wrong of me.” Takashi ran his fingers through Adam’s hair, causing him to look back up. “From now on, I will spend the rest of my days with you. While my health is still in good enough shape, we can do anything our hearts desire. After that, well…” He looked off for a second. “You’ll make the suffering worthwhile. What do you say?”

  
Adam was already tired of his pain and suffering. He wanted it to end, he wanted to be in the arms of his lover, and he never wanted to let him go. However, something didn’t feel right.

  
_It’s a trap. He’s just in your mind. This isn’t real._

  
“I-“ He gulped, clenching his fists and shutting his eyes. “No. We’re no longer together, and that’s it. There’s nothing more to it. Now you’re off saving the universe by being part of- what was that thing you mentioned in your message? Boltron? Wait, no, Voltron. That’s your destiny now. Not me.”

  
The earthquake reoccured once more, and Adam prepared his stance in response.

  
“Adam, help me. Adam? Adam!”

  
Adam jerked his head around, and Takashi had turned completely to stone. A gust of wind flew by, and the statue disintegrated into dust, carried away by the wind. It took awhile for Adam to process everything; he just couldn’t.

  
He heard the sound of crashing water behind him, and he turned around. Above his head was a massive tsunami. Thousands of pounds of water washed over him at once, and he drowned.

  
\-----

  
Adam woke up in the examination room he was in before, strapped to the same chair. The nurse was hovering over him, unfastening the helmet straps. She had a perplexed look on her face, and he wasn’t sure if he wanted to know why.

  
“You knew the Champion?”

  
He never heard that name in his life. “Wha- _who_?”

  
She looked around the room, then leaned in extremely close. “I won’t tell anyone. Zarkon forbid if anyone finds out...”

  
Adam didn’t want to ask. He had a feeling that asking would be a bad idea.

  
“Everyone would just lose it, and that would either serve as an advantage or a disadvantage to you.” She waited a bit before unlocking the restraints and proceeding over to her desk. “Let’s continue the examination.”

  
Adam nodded, standing up from his chair. In that moment, the realization came to him. He only knew one person that just _had_ to have been captured by the Galra and forced to fight.

  
The Champion was Takashi.

  
\-----

  
For around thirty minutes to an hour, he was put through several tests. Some of these tests included cardio and strength workouts, while others consisted of puzzles which resembled intelligence tests.

  
Once the examination was complete, the nurse escorted him into the lobby. Everyone he saw when he left were still there when he came back. The guy who talked to him earlier seemed to be a combination of both bored and anxious.

  
“Next?” the nurse called from the room.

  
The guy stood up and entered the examination room, and Ranok was now facing Adam. “We will wait here until I am notified of your score,” he said. They both sat down next to each other.

  
A couple minutes later, Ranok’s communicator beeped, and he picked it up to read the hologram it projected.

  
“What does it say?” Adam asked.

  
Ranok waited a minute before turning the communicator off and putting it away. “You received an exceptionally high score, which means that you are selected to participate in the Trials. You will be shuttled to my commander’s ship. After that, you will need to prepare for your first event starting in ten quintants.”

  
Adam was expecting that, but he was surprised by the news anyway. “Oh…”

  
“Now come.” Ranok stood, alerting the sentries. Adam followed, getting in front of the sentries. Ranok let the group down the halls until they reached the hangar in which a ship was located. He got inside the cockpit first, but the rest of the group got in after. They waited a few minutes, and Adam was unsure why.

  
One of the doors opened, and a female Galra soldier climbed in. The lower portion of her face was covered underneath black cloth, and she was the most cat-like of all the Galra he had seen so far. She was also armed with a weapon that resembled a katana. Adam was the most intimidated by her out of anyone else in the shuttle.

  
The ride wasn’t long, and it was over before he knew it. There was complete silence the entire time since no one uttered a word. That made the short trip even more intimidating.

  
When they arrived in the other ship’s hangar, the commander Adam saw earlier was standing by the entry. His arms were crossed, and he was wearing a poker face.

  
“Well?” he asked.

  
“Commander Colax,” Ranok raised his arm to his chest in a salute, “the prisoner received an outstanding score on the exams.” He pushed Adam forward a little.

  
Commander Colax stared at Adam for an extremely restraining moment before saying, “Very well. I have him registered as “Prisoner #815: Adam W. We will take his head shot, then he is to be shown his bed and train for the first trial event. I will supervise as you bring him to do that.” He turned to Ranok. “From now on, you will be his trainer and therefore responsible for him. Don’t disappoint me.”

  
Ranok gave a firm nod, showing no presence of fear.

  
“Follow me,” Commander Colax said, turning towards the direction he was about to walk in. Ranok nudged Adam forward once again, and everyone in the group began to stick close to the commander.

  
As they passed multiple hallways, Adam noticed a diverse range of humans pass by him, some shooting him skeptical stares. As sundry as these people were, one thing remained uniform throughout: Most of these people were young. The youngest person he saw was around twelve, and the oldest could have been no more than forty. He thought that perhaps there were older people somewhere else on the ship, but he automatically assumed that most of the people there would be athletic teenagers or fit young adults.

  
The group entered a room with a camera, the first neutral-colored lighting he had seen in days, and a white backdrop. A taped purple “x” near the backdrop marked where the Galra desired him to stand.

  
“Stand on the ‘x’,” said Commander Colax.

  
Adam obeyed his order, lining his feet up on the tape and pointing his toes towards the camera. Another Galra stepped into the room from a door and got behind the camera, about to shoot. Adam didn’t smile at all, and he heavily doubted that he was supposed to.

  
_Click_.

  
And with that _click_ , he was no longer Officer Adam Wright. He was Prisoner #815.


End file.
